by Jeff Andrews, Northern Tails Sharpening
I received a customer’s Bravura and several blades. She said the clipper was burning and vibrating during her last groom. Upon inspection I found nothing wrong with the Bravura but the blades had been melting while on the clipper.
I discovered the cutter notches on both blades were melted and well-rounded out. Apparently she cleaned the blades with soap and water. Washing them this way is fine. However, most soaps will effectively clean the blades of necessary oil and grease.
In the clipper head of your Wahl trimmer there is a round white cam with a silver post sticking out from it. This post sticks in the cutter notch. As it spins it moves the cutter back and forth on the blade to make it cut. This silver post doesn’t spin. Its not on a bearing. It simply pushes on the inside of that cutter notch and if not lubricated it creates friction and resulting heat.
This observation explained what happened to her blades. The friction was so great from not greasing the cutter notch after washing, the revolving post melted the insides of both cutter notches.
Refer to the picture above of both cutter notches. Look closely at the inside of the notches and you’ll see how they are melted. Don’t forget the grease!
Visit the Northern Tails Sharpening website for our lubrication guides. ♦
